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Proper 23

Psalm 5

Trust in God for Deliverance from Enemies

To the leader: for the flutes. A Psalm of David.

1 Give ear to my words, O Lord;give heed to my sighing.2 Listen to the sound of my cry,my King and my God,for to you I pray.3 O Lord, in the morning you hear my voice;in the morning I plead my case to you, and watch.

4 For you are not a God who delights in wickedness;evil will not sojourn with you.5 The boastful will not stand before your eyes;you hate all evildoers.6 You destroy those who speak lies;the Lord abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful.

7 But I, through the abundance of your steadfast love,will enter your house,I will bow down toward your holy templein awe of you.8 Lead me, O Lord, in your righteousnessbecause of my enemies;make your way straight before me.

9 For there is no truth in their mouths;their hearts are destruction;their throats are open graves;they flatter with their tongues.10 Make them bear their guilt, O God;let them fall by their own counsels;because of their many transgressions cast them out,for they have rebelled against you.

11 But let all who take refuge in you rejoice;let them ever sing for joy.Spread your protection over them,so that those who love your name may exult in you.12 For you bless the righteous, O Lord;you cover them with favor as with a shield.

Psalm 6

Prayer for Recovery from Grave Illness

To the leader: with stringed instruments; according to The Sheminith. A Psalm of David.

1 O Lord, do not rebuke me in your anger,or discipline me in your wrath.2 Be gracious to me, O Lord, for I am languishing;O Lord, heal me, for my bones are shaking with terror.3 My soul also is struck with terror,while you, O Lord—how long?

4 Turn, O Lord, save my life;deliver me for the sake of your steadfast love.5 For in death there is no remembrance of you;in Sheol who can give you praise?

8 Depart from me, all you workers of evil,for the Lord has heard the sound of my weeping.9 The Lord has heard my supplication;the Lord accepts my prayer.10 All my enemies shall be ashamed and struck with terror;they shall turn back, and in a moment be put to shame.

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Psalm 10-11

Psalm 10

Prayer for Deliverance from Enemies

1 Why, O Lord, do you stand far off?Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?2 In arrogance the wicked persecute the poor—let them be caught in the schemes they have devised.

3 For the wicked boast of the desires of their heart,those greedy for gain curse and renounce the Lord.4 In the pride of their countenance the wicked say, “God will not seek it out”;all their thoughts are, “There is no God.”

5 Their ways prosper at all times;your judgments are on high, out of their sight;as for their foes, they scoff at them.6 They think in their heart, “We shall not be moved;throughout all generations we shall not meet adversity.”

7 Their mouths are filled with cursing and deceit and oppression;under their tongues are mischief and iniquity.8 They sit in ambush in the villages;in hiding places they murder the innocent.

Their eyes stealthily watch for the helpless;9 they lurk in secret like a lion in its covert;they lurk that they may seize the poor;they seize the poor and drag them off in their net.

10 They stoop, they crouch,and the helpless fall by their might.11 They think in their heart, “God has forgotten,he has hidden his face, he will never see it.”

12 Rise up, O Lord; O God, lift up your hand;do not forget the oppressed.13 Why do the wicked renounce God,and say in their hearts, “You will not call us to account”?

14 But you do see! Indeed you note trouble and grief,that you may take it into your hands;the helpless commit themselves to you;you have been the helper of the orphan.

15 Break the arm of the wicked and evildoers;seek out their wickedness until you find none.16 The Lord is king forever and ever;the nations shall perish from his land.

17 O Lord, you will hear the desire of the meek;you will strengthen their heart, you will incline your ear18 to do justice for the orphan and the oppressed,so that those from earth may strike terror no more.[a]

Psalm 11

Song of Trust in God

To the leader. Of David.

1 In the Lord I take refuge; how can you say to me,“Flee like a bird to the mountains;[b]2 for look, the wicked bend the bow,they have fitted their arrow to the string,to shoot in the dark at the upright in heart.3 If the foundations are destroyed,what can the righteous do?”

4 The Lord is in his holy temple;the Lord’s throne is in heaven.His eyes behold, his gaze examines humankind.5 The Lord tests the righteous and the wicked,and his soul hates the lover of violence.6 On the wicked he will rain coals of fire and sulfur;a scorching wind shall be the portion of their cup.7 For the Lord is righteous;he loves righteous deeds;the upright shall behold his face.

Footnotes:

Jeremiah Dictates Another

27 Now, after the king had burned the scroll with the words that Baruch wrote at Jeremiah’s dictation, the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah: 28 Take another scroll and write on it all the former words that were in the first scroll, which King Jehoiakim of Judah has burned. 29 And concerning King Jehoiakim of Judah you shall say: Thus says the Lord, You have dared to burn this scroll, saying, Why have you written in it that the king of Babylon will certainly come and destroy this land, and will cut off from it human beings and animals? 30 Therefore thus says the Lord concerning King Jehoiakim of Judah: He shall have no one to sit upon the throne of David, and his dead body shall be cast out to the heat by day and the frost by night. 31 And I will punish him and his offspring and his servants for their iniquity; I will bring on them, and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and on the people of Judah, all the disasters with which I have threatened them—but they would not listen.

32 Then Jeremiah took another scroll and gave it to the secretary Baruch son of Neriah, who wrote on it at Jeremiah’s dictation all the words of the scroll that King Jehoiakim of Judah had burned in the fire; and many similar words were added to them.

Zedekiah’s Vain Hope

37 Zedekiah son of Josiah, whom King Nebuchadrezzar of Babylon made king in the land of Judah, succeeded Coniah son of Jehoiakim. 2 But neither he nor his servants nor the people of the land listened to the words of the Lord that he spoke through the prophet Jeremiah.

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1 Corinthians 14:1-12

Gifts of Prophecy and Tongues

14 Pursue love and strive for the spiritual gifts, and especially that you may prophesy. 2 For those who speak in a tongue do not speak to other people but to God; for nobody understands them, since they are speaking mysteries in the Spirit. 3 On the other hand, those who prophesy speak to other people for their upbuilding and encouragement and consolation. 4 Those who speak in a tongue build up themselves, but those who prophesy build up the church. 5 Now I would like all of you to speak in tongues, but even more to prophesy. One who prophesies is greater than one who speaks in tongues, unless someone interprets, so that the church may be built up.

6 Now, brothers and sisters,[a] if I come to you speaking in tongues, how will I benefit you unless I speak to you in some revelation or knowledge or prophecy or teaching? 7 It is the same way with lifeless instruments that produce sound, such as the flute or the harp. If they do not give distinct notes, how will anyone know what is being played? 8 And if the bugle gives an indistinct sound, who will get ready for battle? 9 So with yourselves; if in a tongue you utter speech that is not intelligible, how will anyone know what is being said? For you will be speaking into the air. 10 There are doubtless many different kinds of sounds in the world, and nothing is without sound. 11 If then I do not know the meaning of a sound, I will be a foreigner to the speaker and the speaker a foreigner to me. 12 So with yourselves; since you are eager for spiritual gifts, strive to excel in them for building up the church.

Footnotes:

Coming Persecutions

16 “See, I am sending you out like sheep into the midst of wolves; so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves. 17 Beware of them, for they will hand you over to councils and flog you in their synagogues; 18 and you will be dragged before governors and kings because of me, as a testimony to them and the Gentiles. 19 When they hand you over, do not worry about how you are to speak or what you are to say; for what you are to say will be given to you at that time; 20 for it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you. 21 Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child, and children will rise against parents and have them put to death; 22 and you will be hated by all because of my name. But the one who endures to the end will be saved. 23 When they persecute you in one town, flee to the next; for truly I tell you, you will not have gone through all the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes.